


Spread Your Wings and Soar

by Baroness_of_Bara



Category: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
Genre: Adorkable, Awkward Flirting, Buddies, Canon Compliant, Cute Ending, Cutesy, Discord being equally awkward because he's old and lacks shame and has the bluntness of a stone, Discord is a living relic, Discord is just being a cool older friend at this point, Discord was YOUNG once, Fluff, Flying, Friendship, Gen, Growing Up, Male Friendship, One Shot, One-Sided Attraction, Platonic Male/Male Relationships, Puberty, Schmoop, Spike beinng awkward because he's going through puberty, Spike has those feels for Dissy tho, Spike is only like 15, Teen Crush, Teenagers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Unrequited Crush, Wing Grooming, Wings, god spike is such a cutie, it's like when you're attracted to a teacher as a kid, lmao can you even tag that in a non-romantic fic????, probably like 100k years ago, protecc his smile
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-28
Updated: 2018-05-28
Packaged: 2019-05-14 04:49:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14762897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baroness_of_Bara/pseuds/Baroness_of_Bara
Summary: Spike adjusts a bit to his changing body and newly sprouted wings. Discord tags along and gives a bit of advice.





	Spread Your Wings and Soar

**Author's Note:**

> Bitch I literally SCREECHED when I saw this episode. SPIKE IS FINALLY GROWING UP! HE'S BECOMING A FULL FLEGED TEEN DRAGON! I'M SO PROUD! (ToT)
> 
> so anyways have this fluffy self indulgent trash sjjdjsksgskah
> 
> ((also, as the tags say, this ain't really a shipfic, considering the fact that this is Canon!Spike and Discord and not my Spike and Discord muses. Spike has a bit of a Precocious Crush on Discord, but Discord is either totally oblivious, or aware but not acknowledging it until Spike is of age.))

"Oh my, those are _new_..."

Spike jumped, nearly falling off of the tree stump he had been sitting on. It was pretty quiet this far outside of the castle, and he didn't expect to be spoken to.

He turned his head this way and that, trying to discern who had spoken. He sensed something above him and looked upwards. Discord stared down at him, his smile all teeth. 

"Oh, it's just you. And what do ya mean 'new'?"

Discord reached down and tapped a talon against one of Spike's wings. "These. If my memory serves correctly, and it had _better_ if it wants a tip _,_  you didn't have wings a week ago..."

Spike puffed his chest up proudly. "Yeah, they just grew out! I had to molt first though, so that was sorta gross..."

Discord shuddered and stuck out his snake-like tongue. "Euch. _Molting_. That was such an utter pain when I was younger." He whipped his tail up and down, in order to indicate his displeasure. "My tail itched **so** much. I shed this darn thing about 20 times a year, for _several_ hundred years! It was enough to drive a spirit **bonkers**! I'd take stone imprisonment over a ceaselessly itchy tail any day."

Spike rolled his eyes. "Now you sound like you're just bein' dramatic." He grinned. "How much didya whine about it?"

Discord smirked. "Oh, _egregiously_. Entire epics could have been written about my overblown, angst-ridden teenage whinging."

"Tch. Drama Queen."

"I prefer Drama Emperor. Queens are entitled prats...most of the time."

"What about Princesses?"

"Ugh, don't even get me _started_ on those..." Discord replied snarkily, then flashed the young dragon a cheeky smile.

"That sounds like seditious speech. I'll tell Princess Celestia."

"Ha! I urge you to. In fact, write it on a cake, then she'll **definitely** have to read it."

The both of them collapsed into giggles.

Spike scratched at his arm scales. "So...uh...what's it like havin' wings all the time?"

Discord cocked his head and began stroking his beard, as if pondering. "Hmm, well...I...I don't really use them. Haven't needed to for several thousand millennia. Not since-" Discord trailed off and melancholy passed over his features for just a split second. It passed just as quickly and he smiled. His own mismatched wings unfurled, flapping slightly. "Though, I do enjoy preening from time to time. It's relaxing."

"Preening? What's that?"

"Oh you know, tidying them up...smoothing the feathers, cleaning dirt off the membranes, etcetera..."

Spike stuck his tongue out. "How?"

Discord raised a scraggly brow and pointed to his snout.

"You bite them!?"

Discord frowned. "Heavens no! That would hurt! Some may be into that, but I prefer keeping my feathers in place and my membranes unperforated, thank you." He stuck his tongue out. "I lick them. Clean them of excess dirt and smooth my feathers."

Spike's face scrunched up. "That sounds...gross. You have really strong magic, why not just clean 'em that way?"

Discord rolled his eyes. "Oh, I don't know, why don't _you_ make a fire whenever you come in from the cold, instead of curling up under heavy blankets and falling asleep?"

"Well, 'cause that's more relaxing and comfortable to- oh..." Spike trailed off and Discord smirked.

"I enjoy working magical arts, Spike, but occasionally, it's nice to put effort into something. You know?"

"Heh, yeah...I guess." Spike looked down at his toes and smiled. He looked over at Discord and bit his bottom lip. "Uh...c-could you..." He flushed, cheeks staining purple. "...t-teach me?"

Discord raised an eyebrow. "Hm? You mean teach you how to preen?"

"Y-Yeah. You know...I never really needed to have anybody show me when I was little." Spike explained sheepishly, scratching at his head spikes. "And you're the only friend I have that has wings...or, uh, _**a**_ wing, that's sorta like mine..."

"Well..." His tail wagged slightly. "...alright."

Spike perked up and smiled. "Th-thanks dude!"

Discord flashed the young dragon a smile back. "Of course, you can't clean your wings if they're tucked back. So..."

Spike blushed and extended his wings fully. They weren't anything grand and impressive like those of Twilight and the other princesses, or unique like Thorax and Discord's, but they were _his_. His wings. His new, _wonderful_ wings.

Discord grinned. "Ah, there they are in their full...heh, glory. They are very...." Discord waved his paw around in a circular motion, as if trying to pull words from the air. "Cute." He concluded.

Spike pouted. "They're cool, not cute!"

Discord chuckled. "Cute, cool, it doesn't matter. You're both, aren't you?"

Spike's mouth opened, then closed. He then looked away, cheeks dyed violet. "Just stop talking and teach me already!"

"Hmmph...very well." Discord curled around gracefully and proceed to lap at and smooth over his feathers. Spike stared, momentarily in awe.

Discord was very...limber for his age.

"Uh, Discord, I hate to be the one to break this to ya, but um...I can't do that. I'm a bit too...round."

Discord rolled his eyes. "I know that. I'm just giving a demonstration. Pay _attention_ , why don't you?" 

"Seems kinda complicated that way. I mean, why don't you just try it on me first, y'know, walk me through the process. Then I'll do it to you and-"

Discord cut him off with a noise that sounded like he was choking on his own tongue. "Spike! Honestly, what sort of cheap thing do you take me for!? At least buy a guy dinner first..."

"H-Hnn?"

Discord coughed and chuckled. "Well, uhm, _no_. We will not be doing _that_. Goodness, don't you read anything about your species? Preening another dragon is a _courtship_ _ritual_. And among pegasi, it's a gesture of _intimacy_."

Spike flushed and he let out a squeak. "I...I didn't... _ohsweetfrickingCelestiaIam **SOsorryI**_ -

Discord waved his claw nonchalantly. "Look it's nothing." He stretched his wings and stood to his feet, then gave them a tentative flap. "Preening isn't too important for dragons anyways. Flying, however..." He grinned back at the young dragon. "I'm curious to see how much you _suck_ at it."

Spike pouted. "Tch, I bet I'm better at it than you old man!"

Discord snorted. "Such disrespect. I'm wounded. I was even going to teach you how to do mid-air tricks, but since you wanted to be **rude**..." Discord abruptly took off, flying into the orange and pink sky. Spike's eyes widened and he spread his own wings. 

"H-Hey! Wait up! You were just joking about not teaching me tricks, right!?"


End file.
